title: Dentist-to-population and practice-to-population ratios: in a shortage environment with gross mal-distribution what should rural and remote communities focus their attention on?
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Australia is the sixth largest country (in area) in the world with a total area of over 7.5 million km² (3 million miles²). To date much of the research and policy activity in the dental workforce has been based on simple statistical analysis including practitioner-to-population ratios; however, risks are associated with the application of these types of ratios. This study examined practice-to-population (PtP) ratios as a measure of accessibility.
  
  
  METHODS
  Two states of Australia with a total population of about 8 million people were chosen for the study data frame-set.
  
  
  RESULTS
  General dental practice (n=3841) locations were mapped against population for each state and each suburb (n=3545) within each state. Practice-to-population ratios for each suburb differed by almost 40,000% (ranging from 1:52 to 1:20,100) with the greatest density of practices in the core of the capital cities - coincident with high wealth areas.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The study found that PtP ratios in the context of workforce mal-distribution and geographic impediments to access is an important measure.
authors.affiliation: International Research Collaborative - Oral Health and Equity, Department of Anatomy, Physiology and Human Biology, The University of Western Australia, Perth, Western Australia, Australia. marc@crroh.uwa.edu.au.
authors.forename: Marc
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tennant
authors.forename: Estie
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Kruger
authors.forename: Julia
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Shiyha
mesh_terms: D001315:Australia; D003815:Dentists / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008507:Medically Underserved Area; D019035:Rural Health Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*